When Ranma Met Minako
by Shaun Garin
Summary: Part of the "Sailor Moon" continuity Everyone has something to hide, even superpowered martial artists. A tale of a budding friendship.
1. Chapter 1

"No t-shirts, for heavens sake anyone can see your six pack."

"Try this sweater on. Lower your shoulders a little, don't stand up so straight."

"Now your voice. Try it lower. No, that's too low. Perfect."

"Now about your eyes… for the longest time I've been getting compliments on how unearthly of a blue they are. Wait, dear, can I have those?"

"Yes, that'll do. It cuts the color just a little. I think you're ready. Now remember, read up on those acting books and try not to bluster so much. We want to make sure that you get a good education and having your troubles come down on your head even for a year will be difficult."

"Right. Got it."

*

*

When Ranma Met Minako

Written by Shaun Garin

*

*

The clamour of the reporters was astounding as Minako pushed her way through them. It was one thing to bask in them, but it was another to be consistently accosted by them everywhere they went.

"Miss Aino! Your record sold twenty thousand volumes on the first day. How do you feel about that?"

"Miss Aino! Your friend Usagi Tsukino revealed herself to be Sailor Moon, is it true that you are one of the Senshi?"

"Miss Aino!"

"Miss Aino!"

With a final slam of the doors, Minako groaned. "Honestly Usagi, you just made life so much more difficult!"

"Are they gone?" asked Artemis, sticking his head out of the bag. Looking around, he sighed. "The rest of the senshi have yet to reveal themselves, huh?"

"I know. I have no idea how Usagi-chan's handling it," said Minako. "In fact I-oop!"

"Look out!"

The collision was inevitable. A young man coming from the library collided with Minako, sending the pair tumbling to the ground, spilling books and papers everywhere. "I-I'm sorry," stammered the young man as he scrambled to pick things up.

"N-no it's my fault, I wasn't paying attention," replied Minako as she set to picking up things, Artemis hanging his head. "Sorry."

The young man grinned, just a little and it was a nervous grin. "Sorry about that still. I'm uh, Ranma."

"Minako," replied Minako as she helped him gather everything up. He was okay, a little wimpy was her first impression, with the way he wore that sweater and suit jacket. He wore those big round glasses and his hair was tamed despite being in a ponytail. Classic nerd.

Likewise, Ranma's first assumption of her was interesting. Well made up, pretty, a little flighty but that's the only things he saw on the news. She looked a little tough, sort of rough around the edges but had a warm fuzzy feeling to her.

"Is that everything?" asked Minako as she heaped the books onto Ranma, having gathered the assorted papers and sandwiching them between the books.

"Yeah, that's everything," said Ranma, "Thank you for your help, Minako-san."

"Hey no problem; it's a welcome distraction from the reporters." Patting him, she added, "Later!" and headed away.

Ranma watched her go, and then let out a breath. "Dear momma, it worked."

*

*

"Psst, Mina."

Minako looked down at her bag as Artemis poked his head out. "Check it out, it's that Ranma guy over in the corner."

Minako looked up. "Where?"

"There! The hunched over guy."

Minako followed Artemis' directions and sure enough, there was Ranma, working on a paper while listening to the lecture. "Huh, I never saw him there before…"

"You're kidding right?" said Artemis. "He's been there since the beginning of your school year!"

"… no way," defended Minako. "I know everyone in this class and there's no way I could have missed him."

"Well you've got me. The guy's invisible. It's like he's going out of his way to do so. As if…. Mmm naw."

Minako rolled her eyes. "If you don't mind Artemis, I need to focus on the lecture."

"Right, right." Artemis however wasn't so easily convinced.

*

*

Ranma took a sip of coffee as he returned to his school work. While he didn't need it per say, it was good for temporary bursts of energy that didn't result in him engaging in a good fight. To be honest, he had been surprised; three months into college and he hadn't been attacked or ambushed or anything! Those acting classes really helped him out, as long as he didn't accidentally get splashed.

It had been a long debate that Ranma would have to find a secondary profession when he started teaching in the dojo; martial arts weren't as commonly taken and the amount of actual students had been low since then. As such, it was decided that Ranma would have to go to Azubu-Juuban's college in order to take something he liked.

That in a twist of irony happened to be journalism. While Akane took acting classes in another college, Ranma loved being in the thick of things, getting interviews. Cultivated with his "no need to stand out" personality that he had developed for just such an occasion, the famous Ranma Saotome had all but vanished from the district, replaced by the nervous, soft spoken Ranma. Not even his own classmates noticed he was in the room which was good for him. Of course it made things just a touch difficult to get group projects done, but he had a few friends, Umino and Naru. Fortunately Umino despite being a male Nabiki despite not charging for his information had yet to connect Ranma Saotome to Ranma.

"Saotome-kun," said the teacher and Ranma looked up. "Your partner for this project is Aino-kun. Please meet with her after class."

Ranma looked over at Minako who waved cheerily. Since when was she in this class?

*

*

"So we're partners," said Minako as they took their coffees from the barista. "I guess we should get to know each other."

"Sounds good," said Ranma, balancing his usual stack of books as he set them down on a nearby table and Minako set down her bag.

The bag oofed but otherwise didn't peep.

Ranma looked at the bag and asked, "Do you have something in there?"

"Huh? Oh, just my pet cat." Said Minako, and was completely floored when Ranma fell out of his chair twitching. "Huh? Something I said?"

Easing himself to a chair, Ranma stammered out, "I… I'm afraid of them. Childhood trauma."

"Ah." Minako shook her bag. "Hear that Artemis? Don't come out of there."

The bag seemed to grumble and Ranma blinked. That was some trained cat if it would groan on command.

"So, felines aside, what else is interesting?" asked Minako curiously.

"Well… I grew up in Nerima, went on a trip when I was little. For the longest time I had to deal with an engagement being pushed on Akane and I, but we decided that we needed space to go about our schooling first. We still like each other but we haven't really progressed in that way." Said Ranma. "I commute here every morning from my parents house on the edge of Nerima."

"So you're still engaged?" inquired Minako, obviously surprised. A nerdy guy like this managing to score a girl? Well then again there was Umino and Naru, and they were the most unlikely couple in the world.

"Yeah, of our own free will this time. But at the least, we call each other all the time. How about you Minako-san?"

"Oh well, I grew up here, spent a year in England, and I've got several good friends who are attending here as well," said Minako. "Mako-chan and Ami-chan are studying like crazy, Rei-chan as well who transferred here partway through the school year. It's Usagi-chan who has it tough. She completely swapped majors and is fast-tracked into the Military."

Ranma blinked rapidly. "Wait, you're friends with Usagi Tsukino? Sailor Moon?"

Minako grinned ruefully, rubbed her head and said, "Yeah. It was quite a shock when she revealed herself. I didn't think the girl had it in her to save all our asses."

"Huh, no kidding, but looks can be deceiving," said Ranma, hiding a smirk under his coffee cup.

"So, we should figure out a topic. So how does a rising Idol Singer wind up taking Journalism anyhow?"

"Blame that on my dad. He said that I need a background in media when my "shine" either fades or transcends from idol to international." Said Minako. "Not like I don't have faith in becoming a international sensation!"

Ranma could have sworn the bag muttered "Good going Mina, way to be modest."

*

*

After several hours of working out their project, Ranma and Minako as one, sat back and stretched, the sound of popping bones echoing in the nearly deserted study hall. "Wow, that was the longest study stretch ever," groaned Minako. "How do you do this all the time Ranma?"

"Lots of practice," replied Ranma with a rueful grin. "I was the world's worst student in high school. I had time to refine my technique since then." His mother was quite the motivator.

"No kidding." Looking at her watch, she whistled. "We've been at this for three hours now. But we got the first draft done and the second."

"I'll run it through a spellcheck, and then we'll type up the third," said Ranma. He swished his cup, finding the contents cold. "Blah, cold coffee."

Minako giggled at his expression. "You know Ranma, you're not half bad. When I first ran into you, you're such a wallflower. Kind of like Ami." A thought came to her and added, "You never took a mock exam before under the name Mercurius have you?"

Ranma blinked and thought back. "No, the one I used was Panda-smasher. Don't ask, it's a inside joke."

"I won't. Everyone's entitled to inside jokes." Minako thought it over and said, "Hey Ranma, you wanna come with me and get something to eat? Crown Fruit Parlour is still open."

"Really?" inquired Ranma. "Well sure! I'll just get these books put away in my locker and I'll be right with you."

As Ranma picked up his stuff and headed upstairs, Artemis poked his head out. "You're taking him to Crown? Mina, he doesn't seem like your type."

"He isn't," replied Minako. "But he's a nice guy and I'd like to make friends sometimes. I don't really go for nervous and shy types like him anyhow."

"If you say so. Are the rest of the girls meeting you there?"

"Mmmm, I'd have to ask."

Soon enough, Ranma returned, free of books. "All right, I'm ready to go."

*

*

"Who's the guy Mina?" asked Makoto as the pair sat down in what they unofficially termed the "Senshi Corner", a booth big enough to house several people at a time.

"Guys, this is Ranma, my partner for our Journalism project." Said Minako and the others waved. "Ranma, this is Ami-chan, Mako-chan, Rei-chan and Usagi-chan."

"Nice to meet you all," said Ranma, a hint of nervousness in his voice. "Minako-san's said a lot of nice things about you all."

"Oh? Sounds like Minako has a boyfriend," teased Rei. Minako sputtered her drink, as did Ranma who went further and knocked the salt over. "Kidding, kidding!"

"I'm, um, engaged," said Ranma with a shy expression.

"You're kidding!" exclaimed Makoto in surprise. "A guy like you? Who's the lucky girl?"

"Akane Tendo…"

Rei's eyes widened. "Akane Tendo? THE Akane Tendo? She's one of the rising stars of acting! Movie producers and talent agencies have been scouting her out for months now! Sister Angela from my old school has been raving about how good she is!"

"I um…" Ranma found it hard not to counter how good she was with one of his exploits, and the others took it as a bout of nervousness. Fortunately Ami came to his rescue with a statement of, "Congratuations, Ranma-san."

"T-thank you," stammered Ranma.

"So how did a lucky guy like you snag one of the newest actresses on the block?" inquired Usagi curiously. "Must have been interesting."

"Ah heh, well, I sort of walked off the street one day, into her family dojo and her dad said "These are my daughters, Kasumi 19, Nabiki 17, Akane 16. Pick one and she'll be your fiancée."

Silence. And then Makoto hung her head. "If only it was that easy in real life…"

*

*

"See you tomorrow, Ranma?" said Minako as she walked him to the train station.

"Yeah. And um, thanks. For being a friend and all. I don't have many in school and, well…" said Ranma, fidgeting.

Minako chuckled. "Well if anything you were able to get my studies done in time. And you made a few more friends too."

"That's true," laughed Ranma, and it was the first genuine sound he had produced in a while. "Well I suppose…"

"Give me your energy!"

The pair blinked as they turned towards a young man who was being strangled by a youma of all things.

Minako swore. "I thought…! Oh damnit. Ranma, let's get to cover and…!" She blinked at the empty space that used to be Ranma and sighed. "Easier for me!"

Ducking into an alcove, she threw up her hand. "Venus Crystal Power, Make Up!" In a blast of light, she had shifted from Minako to Sailor Venus and the girl was already out into the street. "Hey Youma!"

The youma looked over and paled. "Oh fudgebuckets," groaned the youma.

"Fudgebuckets?" inquired Venus, a moment before the youma who was made out of pencils hurled a volley of them at her which she swiftly dodged. "Didn't you know the Dark Kingdom's out of service?"

The youma glared as she topped off on the young man's power, dropping him to the ground. "You didn't get all of us sailor brat! Pencil Piercer!"

Venus found that pencils when thrown could really cause a girl to dodge. "Nuts… I can't get a moment to attack!"

The youma was sweating buckets. She knew it was only a matter of time till the rest of the senshi showed up. Hell, Venus was more than a match for her. Her power was out of date, she was weak, a straggling left over from what remained of the Dark Kingdom. "Giant Pencil of Doom!"

Venus yelped as the giant pencil soared down at her and braced for impact when suddenly a tall form stopped it cold. "Hey, youma-thing. Ya shouldn't be tryin' ta kill women you know."

"Who are you?" demanded the youma as fear-filled eyes met angry blue eyes.

The young man that stood there was dressed in Chinese clothing, wore bracers and his hair was in a pigtail. He smirked and with one hand, crushed the pencil. "Me? The name's Ranma Saotome, and I'm here to kick your ass."

'Ranma?' thought Venus as she looked up at her savour. No, this couldn't be the same Ranma. For one thing, Ranma was far different: he slouched; he was nervous; he wasn't this rugged handsome man who she could see the muscles coiling just by clenching his fingers. No, this was a living legend, the warrior of Nerima, the one who brought chaos everywhere he strode. He was a Godslayer, a powerful martial artist.

He was PERFECT.

"Well then Ranma Saotome, PREPARE TO DIE!"

"You have no idea how I missed that," laughed Ranma as the pencils blasted towards him as he cupped his hands and brilliant gold light spilled from the cracks in his fingers. "Moko Takabisha!"

The ball of chi rocketed forward, slamming through the attack and impacting on the youma who screamed in pain. "What?! What is this?!"

"Chi," said Ranma. "You youma drain energy which would be normally a bad thing for me to use against y'all. But pure confidence is like poison to you. Y'need fear, am I right, Venus?"

"Uh yeah," said Venus as she got to her feet to watch the youma scream at the douse of poisonous energy she received. "I'd better finish it off."

The youma didn't even bother to scream anything as it was blasted apart from a Love and Beauty Shock, as it was too busy screaming in pain from the acid-like burning sensation. Turning to Ranma, she said, "Thanks."

"Hey no problem. It's a martial artists duty to protect the weak, but ya ain't exactly weak. Just was off balance, right?" replied Ranma with that lady-killer smile of his.

Venus nearly swooned at that smile. And his eyes, and everything! "Y-yeah. You said your name was Ranma Saotome?"

"Yep," said Ranma, jerking a thumb towards himself. "Ranma Saotome, heir to the Saotome Anything Goes Martial Arts."

"Wow… Well I'm Sailor Venus and it's been a real pleasure. Perhaps we could get together some time and…"

"Venus-chan…!" Venus swivelled her head at the running up Sailor Moon. "Where's the youma?"

"Oh don't worry, it was killed by me and…" Venus looked at the young man who wasn't there anymore, but instead was grinning from a rooftop before he bounded away. "Wow…"

"Who was that?" asked Sailor Moon as she powered down.

"That? That was the most eligible bachelor in the world, Ranma Saotome."

"Wait, the nerd?"

"No! Ranma's nothing like this guy. There's got to be two of them." Venus laughed at the thought of the nerdy Ranma being the hunky Ranma Saotome.

*

*

"There you are!" exclaimed Minako as she found Ranma staggering out from behind a dumpster. "What happened?"

"I… I'm sorry Minako, I sort of panicked," stammered Ranma. "When I saw the youma, I thought it was going to come for me next and I ran and…!"

Minako sighed as she patted him on the shoulder. "It's okay Ranma, you didn't know it was a weak thing from the Dark Kingdom. Hell, you could have taken it!"

"I don't know about that," said Ranma. "But in any case, I'm sorry for running off like that."

"Oh it's okay," said Minako. "You're new here, so you're not used to the weirdness."

'If you only knew…' thought Ranma, grinning inside. Mom was right, a little acting, some different clothing… no one could play Connect the Dots.


	2. Chapter 2

When Stranger Things Have Happened

Written by Shaun Garin

*

*

"Minako-san!" called out Ranma as he waved at the girl from across the campus.

Minako looked up and waved back, excusing herself from her classmates and jogging up to Ranma. "Hey! Ranma! Did you get it done?"

Ranma grinned as he fished out a paper from the stack he was holding and offered it to Minako who took it and scanned it over. "I spellchecked it with the machine and then went over it again by hand," explained Ranma. "Our final draft is all there ready and waiting."

"Oh wow, it's so good!" exclaimed Minako. "This'll get us both an A for sure!"

"Who's your friend Minako-chan?" inquired one of her classmates, a girl with brown hair.

"Oh, this is Ranma, he's my partner for the duration of the assignment," said Minako and another blinked, eyes wide.

"Ranma? That you?" said the dark haired girl and Ranma started to shuffle. "No, can't be… Saotome?"

"Er, I think you've mistaken me for…" said Ranma in a timid voice and the girl examined him. "What are you doing?"

"Quiet." Examining him closely, she checked him over, even his teeth and then sighed. "If you're not Saotome, then I'm a pretty shoddy person with my memory. Do you remember me? Sayuri, Akane's friend?"

"Sayuri? Oh!" Exclaimed Ranma. No wonder she looked so familiar. "Sayuri-san I…!"

Sayuri gazed at Minako and then at Ranma and said, "Excuse us." Before hauling Ranma around the corner.

Minako blinked. "Old girlfriend?" she inquired of her classmate who shrugged.

*

*

"You put on a pretty convincing act there Ranma," said Sayuri with a grin. "I didn't believe it was you. What a difference you make in those clothes."

Ranma sighed and removed his glasses. "Yeah I know. I had to do this to get through college."

"So far it's worked," remarked Sayuri, arms folded. "You look like a totally different person! And you're so soft spoken and shy and timid…"

"Mom's idea. She once saw a play with a pair of twins being played by the same actor and no one could tell the difference," said Ranma as he replaced his glasses, those piercing blue eyes of his muted to grey. "She wants me to finish Journalism."

"A regular Clark Kent, huh?" said Sayuri. "What does Akane think of all of this?"

"She thinks it's hilarious that I'm playing at being a timid man," said Ranma with that infamous grin of his. "Of course, everyone wonders why I'm playing the part of a Kent than I am a Saotome."

"Girl type didn't pan out?" asked Sayuri and Ranma shook her head. "Figured. She's a headturner no matter how you slice it."

"In more ways than one. Mom tried to dress me up in different ways. The best we could get was a timid librarian and even then she's sexy the moment you undo her glasses or take her hair out of the bun," said Ranma. "I've got that disguise on me just in case but its easier being Ranma. And Juuban's nice since I don't get hit by water all the time."

"Ah Ranma, still attracting love interests," sighed Sayuri. "So when's the wedding?"

"When we're both done with school," replied Ranma. "She's wearing my engagement ring now."

*

*

"Sorry I had to steal your lab partner Minako-chan," said Sayuri, returning a blushing and fidgeting Ranma to the girl. "He and I attended the same school and I wanted to catch up in private."

"Oh it's perfectly okay," replied Minako. "You know what they say, wolverines of a kind pack together!"

"That's Birds of a Feather FLOCK TOGETHER!" exclaimed her bag and Minako chuckled nervously.

Sayuri, long accustomed to Minako's "Talking and sighing bag" laughed and Ranma joined in, albeit nervously. "Well, if you need me, I'll be around. See you later, Minako-chan, Ranma."

"So what was that all about?" inquired Minako as Ranma adjusted his grip on the books he was carrying.

"Sayuri-san is Akane's classmate. I'm surprised she's here in Minato Ward. A lot of us went different ways when college hit." Replied Ranma.

"Old friend or old girlfriend?" prodded Minako and Ranma blushed.

"I, er, don't know what you mean Minako-san…"

"Suuuure you don't."

*

*

"All right, before we go today we've got another assignment to hand out," said the professor, earning some groans from some of the more vocal people. Minako looked up, as did Ranma. The pair had started to sit together since their assignment together, and were both attentive at the mention of a new assignment.

"As you all know, part of being a Journalist is finding new sources, and tapping old ones. As such, I'm assigning everyone a location of the city to find an old story from the locals and interview them. You will be pairing off into teams of your own design, from 2 to 5 people."

The man started handing them out and added, "Each location is determined randomly. Please choose a topic of who you want to interview, why and how. Ask all the questions."

Ranma took his copy and turned to Minako. "Work with me again Minako-san?"

"Sure!" exclaimed Minako. "What do we have?"

Ranma flipped the page open and he went several shades of white. Minako looked at the page and read, "Interview Ranma Saotome of Nerima District. Well, seems simple enough!"

Ranma couldn't say anything else, beyond coughing.

*

*

"Momma this isn't funny!" exclaimed Ranma as he had gone to his house as soon as school let out. He wore a sullen, slightly panicked expression on his face.

His mother on the other hand was killing herself laughing. "Oh my dear, only you could get into a situation like that yourself."

"But how am I going to interview myself when Minako-san is there at the same time?" exclaimed Ranma. "You know the moment I reveal myself to her, it's going to be chaos! Everything from flying yeti-things to Chinese Amazon'll be on my tail!"

Nodoka only laughed harder and Ranma turned to his father who simply held up a sign that read "Suck it up boy."

"Fat lot of help you are pops," grumbled Ranma, folding his arms. "Seriously, Minako-san's already told me she's got a bit of a crush on the Godslayer. The way that girl goes into rapt detail makes me shiver."

"Dear I'm sure she's a perfectly nice young lady," said Nodoka, calming from her merry giggling.

"That's when she mentioned something about fuzzy handcuffs and strawberries and I completely tuned it out." Said Ranma with a sour expression on his face. "Seriously, how can I solve this problem?"

"Well, Ranma. When you need to ask someone how to solve a problem, you go to the source of mystical help. Go and talk with Cologne; she'll know what to do."

*

*

"Old bat this isn't funny!" exclaimed Ranma as he watched the wizened and dignified elder giggle merrily atop her staff. "Old Ghoul!"

"Quiet sonny, you haven't given me this kind of fun in ages," exclaimed Cologne, withdrawing her staff from where she walloped him on the head. "Shampoo, come out here for a moment!"

"Yes great-grandmother? Oh! Airen!" In an instant Shampoo had power glomped him for old times sake. "You look too too frumpy with that outfit." She chided, removing his glasses.

"Mom's idea," replied Ranma. "Good to see you too Shampoo. How's Mousse?"

"Is off on delivery. Still wants rematch." Replied Shampoo. "Is Violent Girl doing okay?"

"Yeah, Akane said she's coming home from school for a few days. College break." Replied Ranma. "But I'm in a pickle, considering that my journalism program wants me to interview myself."

"Well then Son-in-Law, what do you suppose you should do?" replied Cologne. "You do realize honesty is the best policy right?"

"Yeah I know…" sighed Ranma. "I just don't want to lie to Minako-san more. My partner in this program."

"Is good then," replied Shampoo, sitting Ranma down and patting him on the head. "Ranma sound very cultured. Very polite."

"Like you have to feign the accent anymore?" replied Ranma and Shampoo's lips quirked into a smirk. "Seriously Shampoo…"

"All right, all right," replied Shampoo. "You'd think after a few years I could still get away with it."

"Her Japanese has improved greatly. I'm glad I insisted on her to use it more," said Cologne, chuckling as she sat down. "Now then Son-in-Law, you'd best tell that girl you're holding a double life. Otherwise it's curtains for your friendship."

"True…" Ranma sighed. "Maybe I should introduce her to Ranko first…"

"NO." exclaimed the pair in unison. "That'll make it worse. Especially if you use the meek librarian personality you have for her," added Shampoo.

"Got it."

*

*

"Minako, you have a guest," called out her mother.

"Hmm?" Minako looked out into the hall and blinked. "Oh, Ranma! Come in! Mom, Ranma and I are going to my room to talk, okay?"

"Have fun dear."

Ranma blushed as he followed Minako. "Sorry for coming by so late Minako-san. I wanted to talk before we head to Nerima tomorrow." He looked around. "Your cat isn't around here is he?"

"Artemis is out at the moment," replied Minako and privately added, "Getting into trouble probably." Opening the door to her room, Ranma followed her and she closed it before sitting down at the small table. "You wanted to talk about something?"

Ranma nodded. "It's about our trip to Nerima. Specifically the guy that we need to interview."

"You mean that hunky guy Ranma Saotome? What about him?" asked Minako.

"Well… that is to say…" Ranma took a deep breath and said, "I'd best show you."

Removing his glasses, he reached behind his neck and braided his hair into a pigtail and messed up his hair. Looking up, Minako found herself lost in those blue eyes before realization slammed home. "YOU?! What?! BWUH? GUH?!"

"Yeah, all of those," said Ranma. "I'm Ranma Saotome. Sorry about this."

Thump.

Ranma looked over at Minako and sweated as she had passed out on the floor. "Well… that was half-expected."

*

*

Minako groaned as she sat up. "Wha? What happened?"

"You passed out when I explained who I was," replied Ranma, still sitting there. But he had in the meantime had somehow changed out of the suit jacket, sweater and other frumpy-like outfit into a red silk Chinese shirt and pants and kung fu slippers. "Sorry bout that Minako. I didn't want to let it boil into a lie of who I was."

"You were lying already," groused Minako, holding her head. "How, or rather why are you acting so…?"

"Quiet? Mousey? Well it's cause of my mom really. You know how I said I had to learn how to become a good student? Not sticking out was one of those things I had ta learn. That, and proper grammar, Japanese, the whole nine yards." Replied Ranma. "You see it started like this…"

*

*

Three Years Ago…

*

*

"Ranma, what is this?" inquired Nodoka one day when she held up one of Ranma's tests. The young man winced at it. "It's a 30."

"Aw jeez momma, I didn't have time ta study," groaned Ranma. "Shampoo showed up with a new meal and then Ucchan followed and it spiralled from there. I was lucky enough to get up in time for the exam."

"Still, it's not good enough. Ranma, walk with me for a bit." Said Nodoka, and the Tendos who were near the conversation shared a look as Ranma trudged after his mom.

Once out the gate and on the street, Nodoka sighed. "Ranma, I have no doubt that you are a manly man, and even your coping with your femininity has been a work in progress. But I am very worried that you will be held back in school. These are the placement exams for the next grade and I'm afraid you'll be stuck in high school without being able to go anywhere else."

"But I can't really do anything to deter the fiancées or the rivals momma," protested Ranma.

"I know, but I had an idea. Have you heard the concept of a Secret Identity?"

"A what?"

"A secret identity. It's a concept from manga and film, especially prominent in western media. You see, when I was still waiting for you and your father to come home, I went and saw a play. In it, there was a pair of twins played by the same person, but no one knew it WAS the same person until the final part of the story when the curtain rolled up for the final time. I was thinking… what if we disguise you in a way that it's neither obtrusive or a method to stand out. Slip from the famous Ranma Saotome… to Ranma?"

"A… secret identity…" Ranma thought about it for a long moment and said, "Well… it sounds reasonable on paper momma but I dunno…"

"It will drive your father insane."

"Where's the closest place again?"

*

*

Their journey had taken them to a local clothing store and Ranma emerged from the dressing room wearing a t-shirt and a pair of pants.

"No t-shirts, for heavens sake anyone can see your six pack." Said Nodoka with a shake of her head. Ranma tried not to beam and she smiled as she handed him a blue sweater. "Try this sweater on. Lower your shoulders a little, don't stand up so straight."

Ranma did so, slouching just a little, lowering his bearing a bit.

"Now your voice. Try it lower."

Ranma thought for a moment and pitched his voice to a baritone. "Four score…" Nodoka shook her head. "No, that's too low."

Lightening it to a high baritone, Ranma repeated the phrase as Nodoka smiled and nodded. "Perfect. And make it softer Ranma."

Dressing up Ranma in the suit jacket, she reached up and undid his pigtail, letting his long hair flow out before tying it in a simple ponytail. And then she tamed his hair with a comb before settling back to examine her handiwork. The girl at the counter was grinning. It was like watching a Superhero Metamorphisis happen/

"Now about your eyes… for the longest time I've been getting compliments on how unearthly of a blue they are."

Ranma shrugged. "Sunglasses?"

"No, that'd give you a cool look and I don't want that," said Nodoka as she looked around. And then she noticed the girl at the counter and waved her over. "Young miss, can I have those?" and she indicated her glasses.

"Sure thing," said the girl as she pulled her glasses off and fished out a second copy to see Ranma put them on and exclaim, "Whoa, strong prescription!"

"Yes, that'll do. It cuts the color just a little. I think you're ready. Now remember, read up on those acting books and try not to bluster so much. We want to make sure that you get a good education and having your troubles come down on your head even for a year will be difficult."

"Right. Got it." Ranma grinned at his appearance. "Wow, I do look like a completely new person."

"Just remember everything we learned. Now give the nice young lady her glasses back and we'll see about getting some for yourself."

*

*

"And just like that, Ranma was born," said Ranma finally as he lowered his tea cup.

"Wow… that's…" Minako laughed lightly. "That's amazing! I never thought something like that could work!"

"And yet it did. Even in Furinkan, I managed to pull it off for a few weeks. I managed to slip under Kuno's radar too." Said Ranma with a grin. "So, still wanna hit or date me?"

"Hit maybe. Date, considering you're engaged I'll just save for later." Replied Minako. "So now what?"

"Now? Now you get to interview me."


	3. Chapter 3

When The Day Turns For The Better

Written by Shaun Garin

*

*

"A plus," said Minako as she read off the grade when she and Ranma got their assignment back. "Quote 'we had very good sources' unquote."

"I would imagine so," replied Ranma, adjusting his glasses. "Considering the source."

"Ah there's the Saotome Ego," remarked the bag and Ranma smirked.

"You should really tell me one of these days on how you manage to get that recording working," said Ranma with a little grin.

"How do you figure? And shouldn't it be my cat talking in the bag?" replied Minako with a battering of her eyelashes.

Ranma laughed. "C'mon Minako, cats don't talk!"

The bag groaned.

*

*

"Moon Eternal, Make Up!" exclaimed Usagi as she transformed and dashed out of the building.

Ranma clucked his tongue. "No matter how many times I see that, I can't get over how the entire demeanor changes."

"How so?" inquired Makoto who was hoping the Outers got the "Backup Usagi" signal.

"C'mon, I of all people know the benefit of a dual identity. Usagi goes from a ditzy girl to something of a warrior with a core of steel. You can just tell by the way she stands." Replied Ranma with a little grin.

"That's true," replied Minako, glad that Ami and Rei had been herded off when the monster alarms rang. "Usagi's still crazy and ditzy but there's a definite posture change. More confidence, stronger and willing to get her hands dirty."

"That's what I said," Ranma with a nod. "Speaking of which, I've got to head back to the house this weekend Minako. My fiancée is coming over. Want to come and meet her?"

"You sure?" inquired Minako. "The great and powerful Ranma Saotome asking his friend to a get together that should be family only?"

"Tch, it's just a quick visit before she heads to the dojo," replied Ranma with a dismissive wave. "Besides, she wants to meet you. I've said a lot about you."

"Oh joy, just how I want to go; killed by the jealous fiancée," swallowed Minako.

*

*

"Ranma!" called out Akane as she approached the door to the Saotome household. It had taken the better part of a few years but the house on the edge of the Nerima-Minato ward had been repaired.

"Hey 'Kane!" called out Ranma, back in his habitual Chinese silks. "You're here early!"

"I wanted to swing by early, cause I was bringing back snacks," replied Akane, handing a basket to him.

Ranma made a face. "You didn't cook did you?"

"Baa-ka," replied Akane in a teasing voice. "I'll have you know I've been taking lessons."

"I'll call for a stomach pump." Replied Ranma seriously. Akane buried her fist in his stomach. Ranma oofed.

"Akane right?" asked Minako, having watched the play by play. "I'm Minako Aino, nice to meet you."

"So this is your lab partner huh Ranma? She's pretty. You're not thinking of swapping the engagement to her are you?" teased Akane.

Ranma sputtered. "Oh c'mon 'Kane, it's not like that!"

"Oh yes, he just periodically saves people in that outfit," replied Minako, earning a look from Ranma. "What? Just saying what's on my mind."

"Baa-ka," chided Akane. "C'mon, let's go inside. Nice to meet you Minako-chan."

"Likewise."

*

*

"She's nice," said Minako that evening as she walked into Ranma's room wearing a sleeping shirt and not much else. "And I didn't think your mom would want me to sleep over for the night. Good thing my mom and dad are cool with this. Why are you staring?"

Ranma colored and coughed. "Pants?"

Minako looked down and she smirked. "C'mon Ranma, you turn into a girl. There's nothing I have you haven't seen before. So, I got the bed right?"

Ranma sighed and nodded. "I've got a futon on the floor. No worries."

Minako nodded and sat down. "So Ranma, I've gotta remark on something."

"What's that?"

"You're probably the first guy without hormones I've met in my life," said Minako. "Most guys would love seeing me in this get up but you only stared for a moment before politely averting their eyes. It's no wonder your relationship with Akane's still strong."

"Well we're not the lovey-dovey type if you consider everything," shrugged Ranma. "Back in the day, hitting each other would convey affection."

"Right. Well we'll do our tour of Nerima tomorrow. Night."

"Night."

*

*

Artemis finally freed himself from the bag. Despite his worry for Minako's chastity, he was hungry like the wolf. Or small cat.

Padding towards the kitchen, he hopped high and pulled the fridge door open. "All right, left over sushi!" exclaimed Artemis.

The light turned on at that moment and Artemis turned around, guiltily. And then he blinked at the large panda who shuffled into the room and looked down. Panda and Mau looked at each other.

And then the panda held up a sign. 'Split the sushi?'

Artemis grinned. "Sure."

Weirder friendships formed over food.

*

*

"Ogodcat!" exclaimed Ranma, backpedaling out of the room.

"Artemis!" exclaimed Minako. "You shouldn't be here, naughty kitty!" She glanced at Genma-panda who shrugged and placed another fish on Artemis' plate. "You're scaring Ranma!"

"Hey, it's not like I'm being a bad visitor," replied Artemis testily and Minako blinked in shock. "Relax, they're used to weird."

"B-but…!" sputtered Minako.

"Wait did that cat just talk?" asked Ranma from behind the door.

'And play a mean game of shogi,' said Genma's sign.

*

*

"A talking cat. Well I've seen weirder," replied Ranma, trying to get used to the fact that the feline could TALK. Years of therapy had curved his fear, but only slightly. He wasn't about to run screaming anymore but it was still weird.

Especially since Artemis seemed to cheat at shogi just as hard as his old man did.

"Well yeah, I've had Artemis since Europe," replied Minako. "He just sort of came into my life one day or another."

"I getcha. Kinda like Jusenkyo, but with more magic. So, which senshi are you?" inquired Ranma.

"Guess."

"Hmm," said Ranma. "I've never seen you run away to transform… and those girls I can't really focus on them. But you're tall… long haired…" he snapped his fingers. "Pluto!"

Minako fell over.

"… no?"

"I'll let you keep guessing," said Minako finally. _Note to self; disguise fields really do disguise everything._

*

*

Tamp.

Minako looked up at the note tossed onto her desk and Ranma smirked at her from his corner seat. She rolled her eyes. What was this, high school? At least it wasn't a lewd note like "Three sizes?"

Unfolding it, she smirked and made a x motion with her fingers. Ranma snapped his fingers and returned to the lecture.

_Close but no cigar Ranma. There's no Sailor Sol._

*

*

"Are you serious? He still hasn't figured out which one you are?" inquired Ami, completely floored by Minako's latest exclamation. "But… he must have gone through the entire group of senshi!"

"Artemis figures its part of the misdirection powers of the senshi magic. Unless I transform in front of him, he won't be able to get it. So technically I'm "Someone Else's Date" in a sense."

"That's someone else's business Mina," sighed Rei. "And yeah, I asked Luna about it. It's how no one else could tell who we are. Even on photographs we're indistinct blobs."

"That's some powerful disguise magic. So Ranma has really no idea which one you are?" asked Usagi.

"Not a clue. I'm sure he'll figure out eventually but no proof for now." Giggled Minako.

*

*

"Trial and error, trial and error," grumbled Ranma as he worked on compiling the list. Every time he thought he got close to Minako's identity, it fell short. Short of her transforming in front of him, but it was one of those damn magical fields of disguising that frustrated him. Just when he thought he had a fix on her planet, he always got distracted.

"Still working at it?" inquired a male voice and Ranma immediately went for his blindfold. "I understand you've got a bet with Minako."

"Well it's a suckers bet," replied Ranma, tying his blindfold on so he couldn't see Artemis but sense his unique chi energy. "she knew that the disguise magic would stop me from figuring it out."

"Well it's a crapshoot like that," replied Artemis casually. "But I'm here to deliver the cheat code. Now then. Think about it for a moment. Luna is with Usagi which means she's moon. Who is the second oldest senshi besides Pluto?"

"It's… it's…. it…." Ranma trailed off. "GAH!"

"Frustrating isn't it?" grinned Artemis. "Love that disguise magic. But think about it for a moment. Try to piece the features one by one."

"Okay." Ranma closed his eyes under the blindfold and for a long moment, it seemed like he was putting things together or fell asleep.

And then he blinked. "Blonde hair."

"Good. Keep going."

"Red ribbon."

"Okay. Now which senshi has those two things?"

"… Venus," breathed Ranma.

"Very good!" exclaimed Artemis with a hint of a snigger. "Don't feel too depressed Ranma, lesser people have been thrown off the track."

"Huh, you're right. I wouldn't have thought about that for a while. So how does this disguise magic work anyhow?"

A long discussion of magical theory ensured.

*

*

"Venus." Said Ranma that day at Crown much to Minako's surprise which quickly boiled to irritated.

"You cheated," accused Minako. Her bag started to whistle. "Artemis…"

"Hey, I just poked him. You had him in a no-win bet. I just had to stack the deck in my odds." Replied the cat-in-a-bag.

"And no one said I couldn't have help, cheater," smirked Ranma in which his female friend stuck her tongue out at him. "Real mature senshi of love."

"Senshi of love wants you to go girl and buy us all ice cream," said Minako.

Ranma rolled his eyes, doused himself and quick as a flash, a mousy librarian sat there. "All right," said the girl softly.

Ami blinked, mouth open like a gaping fish. Rei wasn't too better and Makoto was staring. "He… she…" stammered Usagi.

"Oh yeah, we never explained that," said Minako. "Shoo Ranma!"

"I'm going, I'm going!"

*

*

"You should print that tale out," said Makoto with a shake of her head. "Chinese curses, your father turns into a panda…"

"And fiancées," finished Minako. "Don't forget the fiancées."

"How can I forget?" groused Ranma, digging into her ice cream. "So, that's the life of Ranma. Any other questions?"

"Just one." Asked Makoto, eyes shining. "Can you teach me your art?"


End file.
